DoD Doubles Active RFID Spend to $425M

RFID solutions provider Savi Technology yesterday announced that its contract with the US Department of Defense has been doubled from $207.9 million to $424.5 million. The increased commitment is largely a result of the war in Iraq, according to what the Army said in a statement.

February 14, 2006—RFID solutions provider Savi Technology yesterday announced that its contract with the US Department of Defense has been doubled from $207.9 million to $424.5 million. In addition, the purchasing period has been extended for two years, until January 2008. The increased commitment is largely a result of the war in Iraq, according to what the Army said in a statement: "The extension of the ordering period and raising of the contract ceiling is necessary in order to continue to provide active RFID tags and associated supplies and services for shipments of materiel to the Middle East in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom."

The contract includes the range of active RFID products and services, from tags and readers to software systems. Savi's heavy-duty active tags store 128 kilobytes of data, can be read and written at distances of up to 300 feet, and are designed to withstand remote and harsh conditions.

Savi has been providing the DoD RFID products and services for over ten years. Recently, the 16-year old company has made headlines for its progress with other countries' militaries. The Savi Consignment Management Solution (CMS) was officially released in December, offering militaries visibility of tagged goods not only in their own supply chain, but also in those of allies. The Australian Defence Force will deploy CMS and have it interoperable with US and UK forces later this year. NATO, too, will install the CMS. And last week, Spain announced that its Armed Forces would also deploy the CMS.